The 31-year-old Heinicke smartly reups with the Chargers. His days of competing for a starting job are well behind him, but he can do his part in practice, when needed. The Chargers should be equally happy to retain a moderately capable game manager behind Justin Herbert.

Easton Stick was forced to fill in for Justin Herbert for the final month of the 2023 regular season and apparently failed to impress this preseason, prompting the Chargers to shop for their backup quarterback entering the new campaign. Heinicke was on the roster bubble in Atlanta but ultimately made the final 53 before being traded to the Chargers for a conditional sixth-round draft pick. The six-year veteran last played for the Falcons after a three-year stint with the Commanders.

Heinicke, who started four games for Atlanta in 2023, took a masive pay cut to remain with the Falcons. He’ll now make $1.2 million in 2024, down from his original base salary of $5.2 million. The move saves the Falcons about $4 million against the salary cap. Heinicke will likely serve as backup to Kirk Cousins this season.

Heinicke picked up an ankle injury in Week 17 and was only able to get in limited practices this week. As a result, the Falcons decided to go with Desmond Ridder for the season finale. That means Heinicke’s season will end with just five appearances and four starts. He completed 74-of-136 passes (54.4 percent completion rate) for 890 yards with five touchdowns and four interceptions. He also added 124 yards and one touchdown on the ground. The 30-year-old had the highest yards per completion and QBR of his career but also posted a career-low passing success rate and his second-lowest adjusted net passing yards per attempt. He will always have the strong stretch run with Washington in 2022 that made him a fan favorite, but he is nothing more than a league average back-up. He’s signed in Atlanta for one more season, so he could return to back-up which ever quarterback they turn to in 2024 since his dead cap hit is higher than Ridder’s.